Modern inventory systems, such as those in mail order warehouses, supply chain distribution centers, airport luggage systems, and custom-order manufacturing facilities, face significant challenges in responding to requests for inventory items. As inventory systems grow, the challenges of simultaneously completing a large number of packing, storing, and other inventory-related tasks become non-trivial. In inventory systems tasked with responding to large numbers of diverse inventory requests, inefficient utilization of system resources, including space, equipment, and manpower, can result in lower throughput, unacceptably long response times, an ever-increasing backlog of unfinished tasks, and, in general, poor system performance.
In a modern inventory system, errors in accurate recording of received packages and stowed items may require intervention and verification to correct. Such errors may occur when packaging from a vendor fails to conform to expected parameters or when processing of received packaging errs. Proactive detection and categorization of errors in the recording of received items may significantly improve operation of an entire inventory system by reducing the time requirements for intervention and error correction.